Business Reply EXPLAINED

Explaining printed Business Reply envelopes from the Royal Mail in 2026

Business Reply envelopes are Royal Mail–licensed reply envelopes that let customers return mail without a stamp. You first pay Royal Mail an annual £99.90 + VAT licence, then Royal Mail charges only for the items customers actually return (from 89p each). Choose PLUS for C6, DL and C5 Letters up to 100g; choose STANDARD if you also need C4 Large Letter size.

Business Reply Envelopes, are 'No Stamp Required' Envelopes within the UK. They are part of the Royal Mail response service.

They encourage customers to respond to you, or your company, without paying Royal Mail postage costs. You'll pay it for them.

Business Reply is Royal Mail's more formal, business-focused response format and is particularly useful for survey responses, completed forms, contracts, applications, product offers and payment correspondence.

Business Reply envelopes are the professional way to do it, and Trade Printing UK can print them (after you first apply for a licence from Royal Mail — see below) with your company's details and logo, following Royal Mail's layout guidelines.

Trade Printing UK is the leading Business Reply envelope printing company within the print sector. Our envelope printing itself starts from as little as £19 with FREE DELIVERY; the Royal Mail annual licence and returned-post charges shown below are separate.

How does Business Reply work? 4 simple steps

If you have never used Business Reply before, this is the whole process in plain English:

1Choose PLUS or STANDARDPLUS is for C6, DL and C5 Letters up to 100g. STANDARD is the choice if you also need C4 Large Letters.

2Buy the Royal Mail Response licenceThe unavoidable annual licence is £99.90 + VAT per year, paid up front to Royal Mail.

3Get the licensed envelopes printedOnce you have your licence number and Royal Mail-approved return address, TradePrintingUK can create the compliant artwork and print the envelopes for you.

4Customers reply without a stampRoyal Mail then invoices you monthly for the Business Reply items that are actually returned to you.

Business Reply PLUS or STANDARD — which do I need, and what does it cost?

There are two separate Royal Mail costs to understand: the annual Response Services licence, then the postage charge for each Business Reply item that is actually returned to you. The printing cost of the envelopes themselves is separate.

Royal Mail cost 1 of 2 — Annual licence

£99.90 + VATper year — paid up front to Royal Mail
for either Response PLUS or Response STANDARD

Royal Mail cost 2 of 2 — Returned mail

from 89pper returned item — invoiced monthly
you only pay for responses you receive

Important: these are Royal Mail charges, not TradePrintingUK printing prices. You need the Royal Mail licence first; once you have it, we can print the compliant Business Reply envelopes for you.

Choose Business Reply PLUS if…all of your replies will be C6, DL or C5 Letter sizes up to 100g. PLUS is machine-sorted and has the lower Letter rates. C4 is not available.

Choose Business Reply STANDARD if…you need C6, DL or C5 Letters and/or C4 Large Letters. C4 is STANDARD only, with different rates according to weight.

You need a separate Royal Mail licence for each office address. If you have 10+ other branches, additional licences cost £98 + VAT per year.

I understand the costs — how do I get a Business Reply licence?

You'll need to apply to Royal Mail for either a Business Reply PLUS or Business Reply STANDARD licence. Your licence number is in a format such as AAAA-BBBB-CCCC.

Choose the service that matches the envelope sizes you actually need: PLUS for C6, DL and C5 Letters up to 100g, or STANDARD if you also need C4 Large Letters.

Once I have the licence, how do I get Business Reply envelopes printed?

Once Royal Mail has issued your Business Reply licence, you can then place your envelope printing order with us. Supply your licence number and the Royal Mail-approved return address from your licence agreement and we can create the compliant artwork, including the required Response Services barcode.

Things to bear in mind

The address block, 1st & 2nd class indicia, plus the Licence number must ALWAYS BE PRINTED IN BLACK INK. 

We can add your Company Logo for FREE which we will print in Full Colour.

Benefits of using us to help you with printing Business Reply

• TradePrintingUK can create professional Business Reply artwork for you from our Business Reply templates.

• Supply your licence number and address details to us and we will do the rest.

• Once created, we can forward the professional artwork to Royal Mail for Copy Approval.

• This helps to speed up the entire process and will take the burden off yourselves.

Do Business Reply Envelopes need a stamp?

NO, you don't need a stamp for a Business Reply Envelope in the UK because the postage is pre-paid by the recipient.

Monthly postage charges are invoices based on the actual amount of returned customer post to the recipient, which is usually a business or organisation if they have one of these Royal Mail Business Reply ("Response") licenses.

The address is also pre-printed onto the envelope face, plus whether it is 1st or 2nd Class postage. So a person can write back FOR FREE without paying any postage cost.

If you're a charity it's best NOT to ask your patrons donating to you to stick a stamp over the indicia as it will cost your charity extra money by a fine from the Royal Mail. So in the end it'll cost you money.

Why choose a BUSINESS REPLY envelope over a FREEPOST Envelope?

Good question. Functionally, the two Royal Mail Response Services work on the same basic principle: the sender replies without a stamp and the licence holder pays the postage for returned items.

Business Reply is the more formal and business-focused presentation, making it particularly suitable for returning forms, contracts, applications and other official correspondence.

Freepost is more informal and consumer-friendly, so it is often preferred for marketing responses, surveys, fundraising and general customer correspondence.

Royal Mail's licence is actually a Response PLUS or Response STANDARD licence. A Response PLUS licence can cover both Business Reply PLUS and Freepost PLUS designs; a Response STANDARD licence can cover both Business Reply STANDARD and Freepost STANDARD designs.

How to CONTACT the Royal Mail Business Reply / Response Services team

To CONTACT Royal Mail's Business Reply / Response Services team phone: 03457 950950

Then hold TWICE, then Press '4', then Press '2' — this will get you speaking to an actual person!

Lines are open 8am to 6pm — Monday to Friday. Alternatively, E-mail the Royal Mail Response Services team

Already got a licence? You'll need the modern "Response Services Barcode" added to your existing artwork.

Back in April 2014, the Royal Mail introduced an additional font-based barcode to the licence plate area in the top left of envelopes, which must be added to your additional artwork (if you've got Business Reply envelopes before).

You can supply it by entering the 12-digit licence numbering into their Response Services Artwork Generator and pick the "Response Services Barcode" only, remembering that C6, DL and C5 are classed as "Letter" size, and C4 is classed as "Large Letter" size. Then choose either "EPS vector' or "PDF" format from the final radio button choice.

 

120gsm Peel & Seal

Our standard, Superior envelope product using premium 120gsm white bond paper, features a strong, single-use, pressure-sensitive gum behind a waxy paper strip that you remove to expose the glue before sealing the flap down securely.

They aren't compatible with automatic insertion [Fulfilment] machines — which require 90gsm Gummed Machinable with a special gummed flap shape — but are fantastic for long-term storage and portraying a high-end luxury image for your company.

An easy way for your customer to send back correspondence as a Business Reply envelope, without resorting to licking the envelope (yuck! Nobody needs to lick an envelope any more) to seal it.

These are presented in "Superior" branded, high-end, red & black storage boxes, oozing quality.

✓SHELF LIFE: up to 5 years

✓WALLET Long-Edge Flap

✓BOXED: in 500's (C4 in 250's)

 

100gsm Self-Seal (aka "Touch & Seal")

Our alternative premium envelope on 100gsm white bond paper, these use a pressure-sensitive gum applied to both flaps that you then seal down together to form the bond with each strip of gum.

These have the bonus of a security pattern, generically printed inside the envelope.

✓SHELF LIFE: up to 6 months (as glue will dry out)

✓WALLET Long-Edge Flap as standard on all sizes, C6, DL, C5, and C4

✓SECURITY PATTERN INSIDE

✓BOXED: in 500's (C4 in 250's)

 

Business Reply Envelope FAQ

 

Why has Royal Mail rejected the address on my Business Reply artwork?

For Response Services artwork approval, use the return address issued on your Royal Mail Business Reply licence agreement. Royal Mail's Postcode Finder uses the Postcode Address File (PAF®), so a locally-used address variant, a recently changed address or a new-build address that is not yet correctly listed can cause problems.

We regularly see artwork rejected when the supplied address differs from the approved licence address. Check the address in Royal Mail Postcode Finder and contact Royal Mail if it is missing or incorrect.

 

How long does Business Reply take to be delivered in the UK, with both 1st Class and 2nd Class variants?

Business Reply envelopes in the UK are treated the same way and with the same delivery time by Royal Mail as any other 1st Class or 2nd Class post.

1st Class should be delivered to you in 1-2 days and 2nd Class will be delivered to you in 3-4 days within the UK and Northern Ireland.

 

How long does 1st Class Business Reply take in the UK?

1st Class Business Reply post with Royal Mail should be delivered to you in 1-2 days within the UK and Northern Ireland.

Off-shore islands including the Scottish Highlands can take an extra one to two days.

 

How long does 2nd Class Business Reply take in the UK?

2nd Class Business Reply post with Royal Mail should be delivered to you in 3-4 days within the UK and Northern Ireland. There are NO WEEKEND Deliveries for 2nd Class Post any more.

Off-shore islands including the Scottish Highlands can take an extra two days.

Royal Mail state it's 2 to 3 working days, however from mid-2025, it seems with reduced delivery days in the UK, that is an aspiration and no longer the case in the real world.